When Stanford University’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes released its study last week on urban charter schools, many school choice proponents had good reason to be ecstatic. The driving purpose of the study, which examined 41 urban charter school regions across nearly 22 states, was determining if urban charter schools were performing better or worse than traditional public schools (TPS) in their communities.

At StudentsFirst, we believe that parents are an enormous part of helping to fix our education system. They play a crucial role in advocating for their students each day and ensuring that year in and year out their child has the opportunity to attend a great school and learn from a great teacher.

I will never forget pulling up in front of Harlem Park Elementary School on my first day of teaching. The school was in the middle of a downtrodden, dangerous neighborhood and it was intimidating—bars on dingy windows, trash blowing up against chain-link fences. I was twenty-two years old, fresh out of college, and terrified.

Yesterday we released a short piece outlining the current education debate in Congress and how it might impact your child’s school. In an effort to keep you informed, today we want share a smart and informative piece from Chad Aldeman and Anne Hyslop over at Bellwether Education Partners that dives deeper into the testing conversation at the center of the debate in Congress.

As a second-year teacher, working at a low-income school can be daunting. With a student population comprised of 81% low-income families qualifying for free and reduced lunch, parent financial support is hard to come by, student advocacy rates are low, and donations are scarce.

I had assumed a letter addressed to me from the superintendent was to congratulate me for my students’ test scores or perhaps another request to train others on cross curriculum lesson planning. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to open the letter and learn that I would no longer be a teacher.

It’s election season, and television brings a seemingly inexhaustible supply of campaign ads. Yet, if there is one issue on which it seems every candidate agrees, it is that government must be made more efficient.